Today we’d like to introduce you to Kenzo Vice
Hi Kenzo, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Although I’m the only musician/recording artist in my family, I was raised in a household full of music enthusiasts. I’d hear Michael Jackson, Shakira and Guns & Roses all in a matter of 20 minutes in my house if that helps paint the picture. My parents had countless cassettes and CDs of essentially any artist you can think of. I’d say the artist I was exposed to the most was Elvis Presley. I used to watch his ’68 Comeback Special and “That’s The Way It Is” documentary religiously. It doesn’t take long for his influence to make an appearance when I’m working. I’m very energetic and free, yet very critical of myself, no matter how great of a reaction I get from others.
Growing up I was critical of myself in every way. Long before music. The confidence and self esteem I have now was nowhere to be seen as a kid. I hated my appearance, I always felt like an outsider and the worst part is, many of the kids around me did a great job of reinforcing those feelings. That said, if you told a 10 year old me I’d become what I have I’d never believe you and neither would anyone else. It wasn’t until I was 18 that I pulled the trigger on giving music a real go.
I used to work at Foot Locker and I had a coworker who happened to have a big brother with “a label” and studio. I’ll never forget the way his brother and the people around him laughed in my face when I asked how much it’d cost for me to record there. Needless to say, I looked elsewhere and I’m so glad I did.
My first studio session, my engineer thought I was late, but in reality I was down the hall in the bathroom shaking and trying not to throw up. I was terrified and for good reason. Not only have I never been in even close to an environment as this, but I just so happened to be working with an engineer that worked with bonified artists on the regular. Killa Kyleon, Bun B, KenTheMan, Slim Thug, BeatKing, etc. Houston’s finest.
In all honesty I sounded rough and wanted to just hang it up not even an hour in, but shoutout to Bambino (the engineer), for not letting me quit on myself. That night he gave me confidence that served as the final push I needed to take MYSELF serious.
The first song I ever dropped was called “Like Me”. Was nervous out of my mind to drop it, but it did great. Almost everyone loved it. Next thing I know, a week in, I have 10k streams. I dropped a 6 track EP called “Revamp” shortly after. While all this is going on, I just so happened to be approached by the same men that laughed at me not 2 months before. Suddenly they’re cool with me recording at their studio and even had a contract for me to sign with an advance of a whopping $2,000. As you might expect, they were met with the very same laugh they gave me.
Music continued to drop and numbers continued to rise. I spent most of 2017-2019 on the road, more times than not in ATL and Vegas. I made great allies and friends along the way and built a real following. In 2018 I dropped a remix of Drake’s “Nice For What”, and it went balletic. Over half a million plays in over 90 countries. Life was good. In 2019 I dropped my first full length project “Elevation”, which contained records like “She Wanna”, “Habit” and “Control”, all of which caught a healthy amount of airplay.
In the latter half of 2019, I made some very poor decisions that slowly but surely (along with the help of Covid in the following months) put my career to a screeching halt. Some self inflicted, some not so much. It was so bad that by February of 2021, I attempted to kill myself. I couldn’t handle my home life, nor the withdraw from doing what I love. I put a Smith & Wesson against my temple ready to check out and for the first time ever, that gun jammed on me. It wouldn’t fire. Coincidence? Devine intervention? I’ll never know, but to this day I’m very grateful it did. In the years to follow I released one lonely single, spending most of my time putting my life back together and making a new one with a beautiful woman I thank God for everyday.
Now we’re here. 2025 is standing before us. I used to feel like I wasted so much time, but honestly, maybe not. I’m so much more mature, more appreciative and kind to my supporters and this may sound shallow, but by the grace of God I still look so young. I look possibly the best I ever have, and in my industry, that holds a lot of weight. I can’t say this enough. Don’t rob yourself of a great life by committing a permanent solution to a temporary problem. My grandma always said “When there’s life, there’s hope.” and Father Time showed me that personally.
The future is exciting. I have a couple singles called “Scottie Pimpin” and “The Problem” coming out very soon on all platforms, and I also plan to strengthen my presence on social media once again. My sound has changed some but I definitely think it’s for the better. One way or another, we’re about to find out! You can find on me on Instagram as @kenzo.vice and on TikTok as @KenzoVice to keep tabs on what’s next in store for me. Shoutout to Voyage Houston for showing personal interest in my life and my journey. Its been a pleasure.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Although I’m the only musician/recording artist in my family, I was raised in a household full of music enthusiasts. I’d hear Michael Jackson, Shakira and Guns & Roses all in a matter of 20 minutes in my house if that helps paint the picture. My parents had countless cassettes and CDs of essentially any artist you can think of. I’d say the artist I was exposed to the most was Elvis Presley. I used to watch his ’68 Comeback Special and “That’s The Way It Is” documentary religiously. It doesn’t take long for his influence to make an appearance when I’m working. I’m very energetic and free, yet very critical of myself, no matter how great of a reaction I get from others.
Growing up I was critical of myself in every way. Long before music. The confidence and self esteem I have now was nowhere to be seen as a kid. I hated my appearance, I always felt like an outsider and the worst part is, many of the kids around me did a great job of reinforcing those feelings. That said, if you told a 10 year old me I’d become what I have I’d never believe you and neither would anyone else. It wasn’t until I was 18 that I pulled the trigger on giving music a real go.
I used to work at Foot Locker and I had a coworker who happened to have a big brother with “a label” and studio. I’ll never forget the way his brother and the people around him laughed in my face when I asked how much it’d cost for me to record there. Needless to say, I looked elsewhere and I’m so glad I did.
My first studio session, my engineer thought I was late, but in reality I was down the hall in the bathroom shaking and trying not to throw up. I was terrified and for good reason. Not only have I never been in even close to an environment as this, but I just so happened to be working with an engineer that worked with bonified artists on the regular. Killa Kyleon, Bun B, KenTheMan, Slim Thug, BeatKing, etc. Houston’s finest.
In all honesty I sounded rough and wanted to just hang it up not even an hour in, but shoutout to Bambino (the engineer), for not letting me quit on myself. That night he gave me confidence that served as the final push I needed to take MYSELF serious.
The first song I ever dropped was called “Like Me”. Was nervous out of my mind to drop it, but it did great. Almost everyone loved it. Next thing I know, a week in, I have 10k streams. I dropped a 6 track EP called “Revamp” shortly after. While all this is going on, I just so happened to be approached by the same men that laughed at me not 2 months before. Suddenly they’re cool with me recording at their studio and even had a contract for me to sign with an advance of a whopping $2,000. As you might expect, they were met with the very same laugh they gave me.
Music continued to drop and numbers continued to rise. I spent most of 2017-2019 on the road, more times than not in ATL and Vegas. I made great allies and friends along the way and built a real following. In 2018 I dropped a remix of Drake’s “Nice For What”, and it went balletic. Over half a million plays in over 90 countries. Life was good. In 2019 I dropped my first full length project “Elevation”, which contained records like “She Wanna”, “Habit” and “Control”, all of which caught a healthy amount of airplay.
In the latter half of 2019, I made some very poor decisions that slowly but surely (along with the help of Covid in the following months) put my career to a screeching halt. Some self inflicted, some not so much. It was so bad that by February of 2021, I attempted to kill myself. I couldn’t handle my home life, nor the withdraw from doing what I love. I put a Smith & Wesson against my temple ready to check out and for the first time ever, that gun jammed on me. It wouldn’t fire. Coincidence? Devine intervention? I’ll never know, but to this day I’m very grateful it did. In the years to follow I released one lonely single, spending most of my time putting my life back together and making a new one with a beautiful woman I thank God for everyday.
Now we’re here. 2025 is standing before us. I used to feel like I wasted so much time, but honestly, maybe not. I’m so much more mature, more appreciative and kind to my supporters and this may sound shallow, but by the grace of God I still look so young. I look possibly the best I ever have, and in my industry, that holds a lot of weight. I can’t say this enough. Don’t rob yourself of a great life by committing a permanent solution to a temporary problem. My grandma always said “When there’s life, there’s hope.” and Father Time showed me that personally.
The future is exciting. I have a couple singles called “Scottie Pimpin” and “The Problem” coming out very soon on all platforms, and I also plan to strengthen my presence on social media once again. My sound has changed some but I definitely think it’s for the better. One way or another, we’re about to find out! You can find on me on Instagram as @kenzo.vice and on TikTok as @KenzoVice to keep tabs on what’s next in store for me. Shoutout to Voyage Houston for showing personal interest in my life and my journey. Its been a pleasure.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m a recording artist, known for being melodic and very bold. I’m most proud of the things I’ve overcame and using my bad experiences to breath new life into a whole new sound. I’d say what sets me aside is my vintage demeanor and the level of standards of I have for myself. I think I stand out many ways and I feel no desire to “do what’s trending” or sound like everybody else out here.
Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
Resilience and a pinch of delusion
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kenzo.vice/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kenzoviceofficial/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@KenzoVice/videos
- Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/phenom-455426450
